How You’re Going to Become Really Good at Content Creation in 2026 (Part 2)

Are you ready for part two of Becoming Really Good at Content Creation in 2026? In the last episode, we laid the groundwork for simplifying your social media process and how creating relatable scenarios is more important than ever. If you completed last week’s homework assignment, this episode is all about putting it into action. I’ll share the results of my own experiment (I focused on wedding photographers, but this applies to your industry too!) and show you how to apply those scenarios, making them uniquely yours. I’ll walk you through practical content prompts and how to use them, revisiting the posts we discussed in part one. Whether you’re feeling inspired after last week or still a little stuck, I’ve got you covered!

In this episode we’ll be covering:

• Why human connection and storytelling are so important to your content going into 2026.
• Using scenario and situation based content in your content strategy to resonate with your specific audience.
• Back-to-basics of social media focusing on storytelling, personal journeys, and genuine conversations that serve your audience and build genuine connections.
• Examples! Crafting content hooks and storytelling techniques for services and products that use emotional triggers and personal stories.
• Thinking like a marketer and understanding the human psychology behind content with specific examples of effective prompts and scenarios.

Featured content in this episode:

• The 4 H Method™️| Content Strategy Masterclass

Recommended episodes:

• Episode 080: A Crash Course in Social Media Marketing
• Episode 085: Start Thinking Like a Marketer So People See Themselves in Your Content
• Episode 088: Find Your Content Rhythm and Build a Simple Content Strategy
• Episode 089: How You’re Going to Become Really Good at Content Creation in 2026 (Part 1)

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Transcript

Shannon McKinstrie [00:00:00]:
I am your host, Shannon McKinstrie. Welcome to Good Content, the podcast where I remove the never ending content creation, guesswork and overwhelm so that you can actually enjoy being on social media again and growing your business with what has always worked. Good Content. Greetings from the Bahamas. In true Shannon fashion, I really thought I was going to record part two right after part one, but the week got away from me with the holidays, so I'm recording here and I'm kind of glad I waited because being here just reminds me just how showing up on Instagram and creating content from the heart and not trying to hide your face and telling your story and taking people along for the journey, not just sharing your tips and tricks and personality, it's, it's, it goes beyond that, right? Without Instagram, I don't know where I'd be. Honestly. I'd probably be working in a cubicle, miserable somewhere I don't feel comfortable or appreciated.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:00:59]:
Right. I, I've talked about it a lot on other podcasts of how in a corporate environment I just found myself. I didn't thrive. I felt very intimidated. I never really felt it was for me. And when I worked at CNN, which I thought was my dream job, turned out it wasn't right. Just looking at doom and gloom all day just wasn't good for my mental health. And you know, when I first started my business 10 years ago, social media, people thought it was a fad, right? They, I mean, obviously it's not.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:01:23]:
We knew that, I knew that, but a lot of people didn't, right? And they thought, oh, they could just pay someone a hundred bucks, 200 bucks a month. Time has changed. People have full on social media teams at their companies, right? Back then there wasn't even, there was a marketing team and they barely even spoke social media 10 years ago. So it just goes to show what can happen in 10 years. And again, I've been doing this over 10 years. I started my business as a just like a little side hustle in 2014. By 2016, 2017, I started taking it really seriously. And here we are and we're at an on a vacation we couldn't even dreamt about, couldn't have even fathomed.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:01:59]:
Okay, So I just want you to know I know you're frustrated, but I'm telling you Right now, 2026, I don't want to say it, but I'm going to say it. I think it's easier to grow on Instagram now more than ever. I think it's easier to grow on TikTok right now more than ever, I think it. Because here's the thing. A lot of people. Yes. Is it harder to get seen? Are we putting one reel up and going viral and gaining a million followers like a lot of people did in 2020? No. But a lot of those people, guess what? They're struggling now because they built something that wasn't exactly them and now they're struggling, like trying to figure out how to show up.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:02:29]:
So I'm saying this to say we've gone back to basics. I've been saying it and screaming it for years now. We have gone back to the basics of social media, human connection, storytelling, all that stuff. And I think that's why I'm still here and how, why I haven't burned out all these years, even when the years were really, really tough. Because I love what I do. I love sharing my journey. I love showing up for y'all.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:02:47]:
I love getting to know y'all. I love having conversations. I'm on social media to connect with humans, not just put out content, collect, you know, sell a course and, and not connect with anyone. Like, that's not, that's not what we're doing here. And that's. And I know if you're listening to this podcast, you're like that too. You lead with a servant heart.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:03:01]:
You want to be here and help others. And I love that for you. So just know even if it feels, it feels frustrating, right now, we are, I don't want to say locking in, because locking in could mean 30 minutes a day. It doesn't have to be a full time job. Right. So with that said, with the homework I gave you last week, I hope you did it. I'm so proud of you. It was again, that ChatGPT prompt just to have Chat GPT spit out a bunch of scenario situations your people find themselves in based on testimonials you have, based on stories you can tell, of things that you know, you've helped people have

Shannon McKinstrie [00:03:29]:
Aha moments or conversations you've had with people at your boutique or conversations you've had at a, at a market that you sell things. Right? Things like that. Once you feed all that to ChatGPT or Claude or whatever it is, you can now use it as, like, I would say, a stepping stone. Do not rely on AI too much because that's not what we're going to do. You lean on it as like a little crutch just to kind of help boost and get some ideas going. So with the prompts that it gave you after you did that and you plugged in, hopefully the reels prompts that I gave you on last week's episode that you could screenshot and throw in there. I did it as a test.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:04:01]:
I thought it'd be fun. I actually decided to do wedding photographer because what I love about helping photographers is, like, they sell a product, but also a service. So if you sell a product or a service, this will be a good lesson for all of you. And they're hyperlocal. So if you're a hyperlocal or you sell a product or a business, I was like, it's kind of fun how wedding photographers kind of cover all that, because, again, their pictures are the product, their services the service, and they're, like I said, local. So what I did with this, and I said, you know, for all those hooks I threw in that I shared in last week's podcast, you know, I was like, hey, pretend I'm a wedding photographer whose aesthetic is all about movies. Cinema. They take wedding photos that look like cinema, and basically what they create is the first family heirlooms.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:04:40]:
And da, da, da. Like, I gave it all that messaging, because you don't just say, they take pretty pictures. That's not what you do. And even if you sell stickers, bookshelves, books, or you sell legal advice or you're someone's lawyer in their back pocket, or you help people start a business from home, whether you're a sleep coach, whatever it is, we're buying the reason you do it. We're buying a better version of ourselves. We're following you because we aspire to be something else. You got to remember those. That's where the human psychology comes into marketing.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:09]:
So what it said in that exercise that I had you guys do, one of the hooks was things I blank that you'll blank on repeat was one of the hooks. And I love this. It just chatgpt spit out things I did at this wedding that turned their photos into instant family heirlooms. And that could have been a real that. That was the first 1 1/2 seconds, and then it showed a clip of something she did versus the photo. Something she did versus the photo. Right. Something like that or he did.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:34]:
Right. Let's see. Things I do during golden hour that will make your album feel like a film still. So that was pretty cool. Things I tell my couples before their wedding that make their photos look timeless. So there you go. Now the other one, the pov. Pov you almost blank, but then remember blank.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:05:52]:
I love this. You almost hired a Cheaper photographer for your wedding in blank, you put where you're located but then remembered your photos become your family's future heirlooms. I mean again, not like crazy, but it could, I mean could go viral if the videos and photos that you share are powerful enough. Pov. You almost skipped golden hour portraits, but then remembered they're the most cinematic part of the entire day. And again that could be like five seconds of, of the video and then like bam, bam, bam, bam. And then like four photos in a row. So it's like a seven second reel pov.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:06:21]:
You almost rush through your wedding portraits, but then remember, these are the photos your kids will frame one day. Do you see what I mean by the scenarios, the situations? So the scenario situation for them is like, oh, maybe we'll skip it. We just want to get to the reception. That's the situation scenario that ChatGPT came up with. Like people are like, oh, we, we want to be with the family. We don't want to make people wait too much. This photographer would say, say it's worth it. Your kids will frame this one day.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:06:44]:
This takes it from a day to a eighty year, a hundred year future for a family. That is where the cost of your business or your product or your service goes out the fricking window. Goes for travel here, spend a lot of money on this trip. It's not about it. We're not going to remember how much this trip costs. We're going to remember the memories that we've made. And we've already made so many memories. We haven't even been here 24 hours.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:07]:
Okay, let's go to another prompt. When someone suggests Starbucks, but you already blah, blah, blah. Remember that one? When someone suggests doing Pinterest photos but you already plan cinematic natural moments that feel like a movie. Do you see how freaking easy it is to take real. And I kind of regret I'm giving away all my tricks right now, but I don't care. But this is, this is it. But again, like I said, Chatgpt, let me tell you something. 70% of these were not good.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:31]:
Like not good. So that's where you gotta think like a marker. You gotta look through these and go which ones actually connect, resonate, make us feel. They throw out the situation. They throw out the scenario that people are thinking about in the future or are in right now. And they give them the idea, the suggestion, or they add in the humor to go with it. They add in the feeling that goes with it. And that's how you go viral on Instagram TikTok, LinkedIn, all of it.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:07:56]:
Ooh, I love this. For the favorite things, I'd steal that one. If it poses, I'd steal. And you could actually instead, if I was your coach, I would say poses. I have my clients do to make their photos feel effortless and real locations, I go or steal. It says for couples who want movie still energy. And to make it even more hyperlocal for this person, I would say locations in Denver, locations in Boise, locations in Paris. Right.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:08:22]:
And you can even say off the grid locations, secret locations. To add even more curiosity. It's all about taking whatever. If you are going to lean on ChatGPT and do these exercises, please make sure you're adding in little buzzwords that you see going crazy on social right now. Or add in, you know, secret, boring, unsexy. Like people love that. Cause it adds curiosity. I see a lot of reels and carousels.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:08:45]:
Again, these can be used for carousels. Most of these can be used for carousels as well. Not the POVs. If you do a POV, that's typically going to be an on screen hook of a reel. Something like things I do or poses Those are great for carousels. So the 50 date ideas. One, we'll do this one more and then I'll let y' all go.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:03]:
Oh my gosh, I love this one. 10 shot ideas couples always thank me for from someone who's photographed 200 plus weddings. Again, you take the hook from a viral piece of content. You put your words, energy, personality, skills and the emotions your people want to feel in it. And 2026, you're going to outshine all your competitors because that's what people are missing. They're missing the emotion piece, they're missing the personal piece, they're missing the relatable piece. They don't see themselves in the content because it's boring. And it looks like a blog post title from 2019.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:37]:
We don't. We're not doing that. It is. We are basically in 2026. It is December 2025. We gotta start thinking like marketers. That doesn't mean you have to be a marketer or taken marketing classes or have gone to marketing school, gone to college. Again, I'm naturally good at this because it's how my brain works.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:09:50]:
This is why I studied communications and marketing. I'm obsessed with this stuff. I don't really have to lean on chat to do it, but this just shows that you can. If you're like Shannon, I can't afford to work with you, but gosh, I wish I could work with you. I just gave you the formula. You're good to go, my friend. And I love you and I hope this helps you. And as always, keep listening to this podcast.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:09]:
I will always be sharing viral hooks, things I see going crazy, and what you're going to do. And now that you've trained your AI tool or if you don't want to use AI, just brainstorm. Before ChatGPT, I had to do all this. I had to go, what are my people struggling with? Oh, they're in 200 view jails. What are my people struggling with? Oh, they had another flop and they're about to quit and go back to their job. What are they struggling with? What scenarios are they finding themselves in? What scenarios? They find themselves trying to film B roll and feeling awkward. Because it's awkward. Right? And I'll do humor around that.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:36]:
I'll do tips around that. I'll do empathetic content around that. I take my four H's and I run with it. And you just. They see themselves, they feel seen and then they hit follow. If you make them feel seen and helped and supported and that you have the product service for them that's going to change their life or. Or at least their morning or their afternoon. They're in.

Shannon McKinstrie [00:10:54]:
They're in. And they're a fan for life. I love you, friend. You've got this.